1345.02
Unfair or deceptive acts or practices.

(A)
No supplier shall commit an unfair or
deceptive act or practice in connection with a consumer transaction. Such an
unfair or deceptive act or practice by a supplier violates this section whether
it occurs before, during, or after the transaction.

(B)
Without limiting the scope of division
(A) of this section, the act or practice of a supplier in representing any of
the following is deceptive:

(1)
That the
subject of a consumer transaction has sponsorship, approval, performance
characteristics, accessories, uses, or benefits that it does not have;

(2)
That the subject of a consumer
transaction is of a particular standard, quality, grade, style, prescription,
or model, if it is not;

(3)
That
the subject of a consumer transaction is new, or unused, if it is not;

(4)
That the subject of a consumer
transaction is available to the consumer for a reason that does not exist;

(5)
That the subject of a consumer
transaction has been supplied in accordance with a previous representation, if
it has not, except that the act of a supplier in furnishing similar merchandise
of equal or greater value as a good faith substitute does not violate this
section;

(6)
That the subject of a
consumer transaction will be supplied in greater quantity than the supplier
intends;

(D)
No supplier shall offer to a consumer or
represent that a consumer will receive a rebate, discount, or other benefit as
an inducement for entering into a consumer transaction in return for giving the
supplier the names of prospective consumers, or otherwise helping the supplier
to enter into other consumer transactions, if earning the benefit is contingent
upon an event occurring after the consumer enters into the transaction.

(1)
No supplier, in connection with a
consumer transaction involving natural gas service or public telecommunications
service to a consumer in this state, shall request or submit, or cause to be
requested or submitted, a change in the consumer's provider of natural gas
service or public telecommunications service, without first obtaining, or
causing to be obtained, the verified consent of the consumer. For the purpose
of this division and with respect to public telecommunications service only,
the procedures necessary for verifying the consent of a consumer shall be those
prescribed by rule by the public utilities commission for public
telecommunications service under division (D) of section
4905.72 of the Revised Code. Also,
for the purpose of this division, the act, omission, or failure of any officer,
agent, or other individual, acting for or employed by another person, while
acting within the scope of that authority or employment, is the act or failure
of that other person.

(2)
Consistent with the exclusion, under
47 C.F.R.
64.1100(a)(3) , of commercial
mobile radio service providers from the verification requirements adopted in
47 C.F.R.
64.1100 ,
64.1150 ,
64.1160 ,
64.1170 ,
64.1180 , and
64.1190 by the federal
communications commission, division (E)(1) of this section does not apply to a
provider of commercial mobile radio service insofar as such provider is engaged
in the provision of commercial mobile radio service. However, when that
exclusion no longer is in effect, division (E)(1) of this section shall apply
to such a provider.

(3)
The
attorney general may initiate criminal proceedings for a prosecution under
division (C) of section
1345.99 of the Revised Code by
presenting evidence of criminal violations to the prosecuting attorney of any
county in which the offense may be prosecuted. If the prosecuting attorney does
not prosecute the violations, or at the request of the prosecuting attorney,
the attorney general may proceed in the prosecution with all the rights,
privileges, and powers conferred by law on prosecuting attorneys, including the
power to appear before grand juries and to interrogate witnesses before grand
juries.

(F)
Concerning
a consumer transaction in connection with a residential mortgage, and without
limiting the scope of division (A) or (B) of this section, the act of a
supplier in doing either of the following is deceptive:

(1)
Knowingly failing to provide disclosures
required under state and federal law;

(2)
Knowingly providing a disclosure that
includes a material misrepresentation.